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( I ) SITE OF THE FIRST PERMANENT ENGLISH SETTLEMENT IN
AMERICA ( | )
OF
THE
MEETING
FIRST
PLACE
REPRESENTA-
TIVE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY IN
AMERICA d )
AND FOR 92 YEARS
T H E C A P I T A L OF V I R G I N I A d )
On May 13, 1607, three small English ships drew
near to Jamestown Island in Virginia and moored to
trees on shore. T h e next day, wrote George Percy, one
of the party, "we landed all our men, which were set to
work about the fortification, others some to watch and
ward as it was convenient . . . ." By mid-June, Percy
continued, "we had built and finished our Fort, which
was triangle wise . . . . W e had also sowne most of our
Corne on two Mountaines. It sprang a mans height
from the ground." T h u s began the first permanent English settlement in America, 20 years after the ill-fated
attempts to plant a colony on Roanoke Island in Carolina and 13 years before her Pilgrims landed at Plymouth
in New England.
Here the Jamestown colonists found a pleasant land,
but one whose ways were strange to Englishmen. T h e
first years were a continuing struggle to overcome sickness, hunger, the forest, and an unhealthy location, all
made worse by inexperience and disagreements.
Yet
against these odds the colonists built houses and a fort,
planted crops, and began the conquest of an enormous
wilderness. Soon the land became their home. Their
transplanted church took root, they maintained their
rights as free men, and in less than a score of years they
evolved representative government.
This settlement was proof of England's determination
to share in the rewards of New World colonization.
Over a hundred years had passed since Columbus first
stumbled on the vast new lands of the Western Hemisphere. For half that time England was unable to contest effectively Spanish claims to this territory.
But
during Queen Elizabeth's reign a surging nationalism,
COVER: The seal that James I granted to the Virginia Company remained in use until the surrender of Virginia to the
Commonwealth in 1652. The front side (top) shows the arms
of England, with the Latin inscription "For. His Council of
Virginia," and the reverse (bottom) King James in royal robes,
with "Seal of the King of Great Britain, France, and Ireland."
new commercial conditions, and the overthrow of Spanish
seapower combined to prepare the way for English colonizing ventures in America.
T w o early enterprises that failed made it evident that
exploitation of America called for more than the fortunes of a few. In 1583 Sir Humphrey Gilbert tried
without success to establish a settlement in Newfoundland. A year later Sir W a l t e r Raleigh made the first
of several unsuccessful attempts to plant colonies in
South America and at Roanoke Island on the Carolina
coast. Trading companies now took up where some of
the epic figures of the age had left off.
Encouraged by the success of joint-stock ventures in
the East Indies, a group of merchants and investors from
London, Plymouth, and elsewhere secured from King
James on April 10, 1606, a charter to establish colonies
in "Virginia," Raleigh's old territory. T h e London
merchants, assigned the southern part of this area, were
the first to take advantage of the grant. Late in 1606
the expedition destined for Jamestown sailed down the
Thames from London carrying 144 persons and a cargo
of supplies.
T h e ships were the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and
the Discovery, and their commander was Capt. Christopher Newport, an able seaman. After a slow start,
months at sea, stops in the West Indies, and a brief
stay at Cape Henry, the colonists —now only some 105—
sailed up a broad river, which they named for their king,
and selected Jamestown as the place of settlement.
T h e Jamestown colony began with bright hopes. Contemporary accounts speak of the land's good soil, abundant timber, and plentiful game. "Heaven and earth
never agreed better to frame a place for man's habitation," declared one writer. But tragedy plagued the
colony from the start. Death and disease struck often,
the Indians grew distrustful, provisions constantly ran
low, dissension became a serious problem.
O u t of these troubles arose a forceful leader in the
person of Capt. John Smith. His vigorous leadership,
more than that of any other, kept the colony together
during its first years. He had the church and fort repaired, a well dug, and 20 cabins built. Opposing the
craze for gold seeking, he forced the colonists to plant
corn and raise chickens and livestock. Yet like those in
authority before him, he never entirely mastered the difficulties facing the settlers.
When Smith sailed for England in October 1609 after
being injured by an explosion, he left, in spite of his efforts, a colony divided by quarrels and on the verge of
failure. T h e winter of 1609-10 was the terrible "starving time." Within 6 months, 90 percent of the colonists
died. Discouragement became so great that only the
timely arrival in June 1610 of the new governor, Lord
Delaware, with more men and supplies prevented abandonment of the colony.
T h e stern but efficient administration of Sir Thomas
Dale (deputy to Lord Delaware) gave new life to the
floundering colony. Under his leadership martial law
was established, more settlers arrived from England,
private use of land was recognized, and new areas
were settled. Gradually Jamestown took on a look of
permanence. By 1614 the settlement, boasting of streets
and houses, could well be called a town.
As early as 1612 the colonists—led by one John Rolfe —
had begun to cultivate tobacco as a commercial crop.
T h e first shipments left Jamestown in 1613, and within
6 years exports totaled over 40,000 pounds, all sent to
England. This crop soon provided a firm economic base
for the colony, spurring both expansion of the settlement
area and immigration from England.
It was this same John Rolfe who in 1614 married
Pocahontas, daughter of the Indian chief, Powhatan, in
the church at Jamestown. This union helped bring about
a period of peace with the Indians.
As settlements spread outward along the James and
other rivers, Jamestown remained the political and economic center of the colony. In 1619 the first representative legislative assembly in America met in the Jamestown
Church. T h a t same year the first Negroes arrived in
Virginia, brought by a Dutch warship. These were sold
to the colonists as indentured servants. Much later the
Negro, as slave, would become the mainstay of the
colony's labor system.
Industrial, as well as agricultural, beginnings in British America can be traced to Jamestown. T h e colonists
almost immediately sent out expeditions to evaluate the
country's natural resources, for the colony was in large
measure an economic venture. Soon there were attempts
at making pitch, tar, and soap, producing glass and silk,
and harvesting timber. None succeeded in rivaling tobacco as the chief economic activity.
T h e period of progress that began in 1619 was interrupted briefly in 1622. T h a t year a sudden Indian uprising caused the colony great destruction of life and
property. T h e massacre swept through the outlying settlements, but Jamestown escaped when warned through an
Indian boy, Chanco. Nearly a fourth of the population
were killed, and the survivors were left panic-stricken.
Though the Indians were defeated the next year, the
massacre both sharpened King James's dissatisfaction with
the Virginia Company and intensified disagreement within
the company. By 1624 affairs were in such disorder that
James had little difficulty in dissolving the company that
had managed the colony since its founding.
Virginia
now became a royal colony, a status continued until the
American Revolution.
T h e colony prospered under royal rule. Instead of
profits for investors the crown emphasized development
and expansion. Population rose steadily from 1,275 in
1624 to 5,000 in 1635 to 8,000 in 1642. New territory
was settled, chiefly in the form of plantations along waterways, and new communities sprang up. Though Jamestown did not keep pace with the rest of the colony's
growth, it remained, as before, the hub of political and
social life in Virginia. W h e n Virginians asserted their
right in 1635 and deposed the royal Governor, Sir John
Harvey, it was the council, meeting in "James T o w n e , "
that performed the act.
T h e period 1642-60, marked by political upheaval and
Cromwellian rule in England, was one of continued
growth for the Virginia colony. During the first years of
the English Commonwealth the colonists remained loyal to
both crown and church, though they did submit to the new
parliament in 1652 after a show of force before Jamestown. Until royal authority was reestablished in 1661,
the Governor, council, and other officers were selected
by the colony. In 1662 the Virginia assembly framed
legislation to guide development of the town. It "shall
consist of thirty two houses, each house to be built with
brick, forty foot long, twenty foot wide . . . eighteen
foote high above the ground . . . the houses shall be
all regularly placed one by another in a square or such
other forme as the honorable Sir William Berkeley
[Governor of the colony] shall appoint . . . ." Yet
despite these efforts Jamestown did not become the central
city the crown hoped for. Fourteen years after these
instructions Jamestown still contained only some two
dozen houses.
After the restoration of Charles II in 1660, Sir William Berkeley was again appointed to the governorship.
For a decade and a half he conducted a reasonably progressive—though undemocratic—administration, and the
colony grew and expanded. But popular feeling had long
been mounting against his personal style of government.
In 1676 unrest became open rebellion. Their anger
fanned by unchecked Indian depredations along the frontier, the colonists revolted against Berkeley. Nathaniel
Bacon, leader of the unhappy frontiersmen, drove the
Governor from power, and his men burned Jamestown,
believing it to be the "stronghold of oppression."
T h e rebellion collapsed when Bacon suddenly died. A
new governor soon replaced Berkeley, and deciding against
removing the capitol from Jamestown, authorities in England ordered the town rebuilt. By 1697 a statehouse,
country house, church, fort, powder magazine, and 20
or 30 houses stood on the old ruins. T h e end was merely
postponed, for after the fourth statehouse burned in
1698, the seat of government was moved to Williamsburg, where it opened in 1700. Eventually the town was
abandoned, and gave way to a plantation economy about
the time of the American Revolution. It was then, too,
that the isthmus connecting Jamestown to the mainland
washed out, transforming the peninsula into an island.
JAMESTOWN
TODAY
T h e Jamestown of history, now only ruins, lies along
the James River for three-quarters of a mile, backed by
a salt marsh called the Pitch and T a r Swamp. T h e
first fort stood on land long since washed away by the
river. Gradually the town grew as the colonists built
houses, a church, a market place, shops, storehouses
statehouses, and other public buildings along meandering
streets and paths. Jamestown was never a city in the
modern concept, but more a small town constantly
changing in layout and architecture.
At Jamestown the historian, archeologist, and architect have worked closely together to construct a picture
of life in the 17th century. Excavations have uncovered
all sorts of foundations, countless artifacts, and burial
grounds. T h e objects suggest the manner of living of the
first Virginians, while building remains and the terrain
trace out the town's development.
T h e foundations of three of Jamestown's four Statehouses mark the beginnings of representative government
in America. T h e Old Church Tower and remains of
other early churches speak of the settlers' religious heritage. Evidences of homes and industries portray the
Englishman's efforts to bring his way of life to a new
continent. Statues and memorials recall bold leaders and
important happenings in the struggle for mastery of a
new land. This story is recounted at the Jamestown
Visitor Center ( 1 ) , where the walking tour through the
town site begins.
JAMESTOWN BY FOOT
From the terrace of the Tercentenary Monument (2)
visitors can survey the townsite and its setting This 103foot shaft of New Hampshire granite was erected in 1907
to commemorate the 300th anniversary of Jamestown.
After passing the Pocahontas Monument ( 3 ) , the
work of William Ordway Partridge, the tour route leads
to the Church Area ( 4 ) . T h e ivy-covered Old Tower,
the only standing ruin from 17th-century Jamestown, was
probably part of the first brick church, begun in 1639.
On this site in 1907 the Colonial Dames of America built
the Memorial Church. Within are burials, memorials,
and the foundations of the earlier church, said to have
housed the meeting of the first representative legislative
assembly in America, which convened on July 30, 1619.
Gravestones in the churchyard witness to the antiquity
of the spot.
T h e walk then leads through a Confederate earthwork
to the Rev. Robert H u n t Memorial ( 5 ) . Here in 1607
H u n t administered the first recorded Holy Communion
in America. This was according to the rites of the Church
of England.
T h e Memorial Cross (6) marks the earliest known
cemetery at Jamestown, a place associated with the first
days of the colony and perhaps even with the "starving
time" of 1609-10. On this same ground later stood the
T h i r d and Fourth Statehouses, whose foundations still
exist ( 7 ) .
T h e lone cypress ( 8 ) , standing several hundred feet
off shore, is evidence of erosion that has taken 25 acres
of the site's western end. T h e first landing site (9) and
the traditional site of "James Fort" (10) were on this
land. A seawall checks further damage here.
T h e walk now proceeds along the seawall past an exhibit (11) showing layers of Jamestown soil with relics
of different occupations. T h e House of Burgesses Monument (12) lists those who sat in the first representative
legislative body in America. Nearby is the Capt. John
Smith Statue ( 1 3 ) , designed by William Couper.
Near the river in the townsite area are foundations
thought to be those of the First Statehouse ( 1 4 ) , used
between 1641 and 1656. At the east end of the townsite was " N e w Towne," developed after 1620. Some
notable Virginians lived here. One foundation (15) was
probably the homesite of Henry Hartwell, a founder of
the College of William and Mary. An early "Country
House—or government residence—(16) has also been
identified.
T h e Jaquelin-Ambler House ruins ( 1 7 ) , a once impressive structure with formal gardens, link Jamestown
with the 18th century. T h e house was built about 1710
when Jamestown, no longer the seat of government, was
a private estate. O n past these ruins are the Long House
Foundations (18) where an early apartment-like building stood. Farther along is an early industrial area ( 1 9 ) .
JAMESTOWN BY CAR
A 5-mile drive (or a shorter loop of 3 miles, if your
time is limited) winds through the 1,500 acres of woodland and marsh that is Jamestown Island. Exhibits interpret both the land and its people.
T h e road passes a Confederate fort ( A ) and "the
pond" ( B ) where Lawrence Bohun collected herbs for
medical experiment in 1610. Black Point ( C ) at the
tip of the island gives a full view of the lower reaches
of the James River. On the return trip is the Travis
graveyard ( D ) .
On Glasshouse Point are the ruins of furnaces ( E )
used in 1608 by artisans who came over to produce glass.
Nearby is a glassblowing exhibit ( F ) of a type that might
have been used in Virginia and England three and a half
centuries ago. Glassware, made each day in demonstrations, is on sale here.
Near the entrance to Jamestown is Jamestown Festival
Park ( G ) , administered by the Jamestown Foundation
for the Commonwealth of Virginia. Open daily, the park
features exhibit pavilions and reconstructions of "James
Fort," the three ships, and an Indian "lodge."
ABOUT YOUR VISIT
Jamestown, 10 miles from Williamsburg, is easily
reached over the Colonial Parkway. Approaching from
the south, you should take Va. 10 and 31 to Scotland,
where a ferry crosses the James River to Glasshouse Point
near the Jamestown entrance. Va. 5 from Richmond
also connects with Va. 31.
Jamestown is open daily, except December 25. T h e
50-cent admission fee is waived for children under 16
and escorted school groups. Special guide service is
provided for groups if advance arrangements are made
with the superintendent.
For information—and introductory program, exhibits,
and literature—stop by the Jamestown Visitor Center.
There are no eating or lodging facilities at Jamestown, but
nearby Jamestown Festival Park has a cafeteria and picnic
area and 8 miles eastward on the Colonial Parkway is
the Great Neck picnic area.
ADMINISTRATION
T h e Jamestown area is jointly administered by the
National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior,
and the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. T h e Association owns the area of the Jamestown National Historic Site, about 20 acres that embrace
the western end of the site of old Jamestown. T h e remainder of Jamestown and of Jamestown Island is a
part of Colonial National Historical Park. A superintendent, whose address is Yorktown, Va. 23490, is in
immediate charge of the park.
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AMERICA'S NATURAL RESOURCES
T h e Department of the Interior—the Nation's principal natural resource agency—bears a special obligation to
assure that our expendable resources are conserved, that
our renewable resources are managed to produce optimum
benefits, and that all resources contribute to the progress
and prosperity of the United States, now and in the
future.
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T o the Association for the Preservation of Virginia
Antiquities the Nation owes its gratitude for the first
successful organized effort to save the Jamestown site.
In 1893 the Association acquired title to 22 acres on
Jamestown Island. Later they donated to the United
States the tract on which the Tercentenary Monument
was erected in 1907. In 1940 the Secretary of the Interior designated the Association's grounds as Jamestown
National Historic Site. Since then the whole of Jamestown Island has been developed under a cooperative
agreement between the Department of the Interior and
the Association.
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UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
Revised 1966
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GPO : 1966 0 — 796-798
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